The Metro-North Hail Mary
Fiction
“Yo, mister,” a teenager named Scotty yelled. “You dropped your wallet!” But the man kept running toward the Metro-North train. It was seconds away from leaving the Poughkeepsie station on a rare one-shot all the way to Grand Central.
Scotty pulled down his hood and sprinted after him, yelling louder. “Hey,” he called, waving the bulky piece of leather in his throwing hand.
At the last possible moment, one foot on board the train, the other on the platform, the man turned and looked.
Scotty planted his feet and heaved a Hail Mary from the kiosk. The wallet must have soared a solid thirty yards, end over end. It opened in midair, flapping its wings in birdlike fashion.
Miraculously, nothing fell out as it made its descent. Two elderly women sitting at a nearby bench watched the spectacle, their mouths open in perfect Os.
The man leaned out from the train – duffel bag in right hand, left hand stretched wide open – and snatched the wallet out of the air.
Everyone on board let out a cheer as the man raised his fist in triumph. “Thanks, kid!” he called as he started to step inside the train. But as he did, the door closed with perfectly imperfect timing, knocking into his hand. He dropped the wallet.
Scotty sunk to a knee in utter disbelief as the train rolled southbound down the tracks. “Shoot,” he muttered under his breath.
The two ladies on the bench were laughing their heads off and slapping their thighs. “It was a good throw, son,” they said as Scotty walked closer. All he could do was shrug and share their laughter.
Scotty made sure the coast was clear, then hopped onto the tracks to retrieve the wallet. He opened it.
“Must not be Vince’s day,” he said to the women, who now had tears streaming down their faces. Scotty smiled as he walked toward the parking garage attendant to turn it in.
Thank you so much for reading “The Metro-North Hail Mary” — I hope you enjoyed it.
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Have a great weekend, everyone.
You passed. 😉 That was a fun one. 🤓
I loved this! The throw was so cinematic, the drop so (sadly) realistic.